Class Of The Year
by Megiido
Summary: Grand Ridge Academy is a wonderful boarding school, only teaching the best of the best. But when a secret that should've been kept quiet is discovered, nothing is what it seems to be. SYOC, details inside! (Image: yours truly)
1. Form

It radiated an odd sort of aura. It always did, but it seemed to be stronger this time.

It had always been said that the school acted like a beacon, attracting everything that had a strange feeling, everything that wasn't quite what it seemed to be.

It was also said that the academy had secrets of its own. Secrets that were buried deep in its history, that could only be found with lots and lots of digging. And the school didn't take too kindly to digging.

That was an invasion of privacy, and that was rude.

Despite the slightly eerie ambience that surrounded both the building and the woods behind it, it was a prestigious academy, only taking the ones which it deemed worthy. There was no place for the weak or the slow here.

Because of this, its popularity as a well-endowed school had taken root, and hundreds of families sent their children, hoping that they would be accepted and rewarded with an education that well surpassed the ones of other schools.

Some did make it, some didn't. It was as simple as that.

But with the enrollment of a student came risks. That they would fall behind and get expelled, or that they would get caught doing something that they shouldn't be doing. And there was the constantly resurfacing rumor that if the school didn't like you for whatever reason, you would disappear without a trace.

But it was just that, a rumor. It didn't have any evidence, and no one ever bothered to check if there were even occurrences of disappearing students.

Not that the academy would let them.

Anyways, that's all nonsense. This was a perfectly normal school, with perfectly normal students.

Right?

* * *

 **Guess who's back with another one of these?**

 **Anyways, here's an idea that had been swimming in my head for a while.**

 **These ~mysterious school~ kinds of things have always interested me, so I decided to do one of my own!**

 **And here are the rules:**

 **-I will be accepting 10 OCs, with a preferable gender ratio of 5 girls and 5 boys. (The ratio may change as more OCs are submitted.)**

 **-This is selective. Not everyone's OC will make it in, and to ensure you have a chance, make your OC as unique as possible, and be descriptive. IMPRESS ME! But remember not to go too overboard.**

 **-And if you don't make it in, your OC will possibly make a cameo as a background character!**

 **-Here's the form-**

 _Fields marked with an asterisk (_ * _) are required. Fields not marked are...not required!_

Name*: (First and Last)

Gender*:

Age*: (13-16)

Species*: (animatronic or human) The animatronics will be anthropomorphized.

 **ooo**

 **Appearance-**

Eye Color*:

Hair/Fur Color*:

Build*:

Casual Clothing*: (There will be uniforms, so this would be something your OC would wear after classes/during free time.)

 **ooo**

 **Personality-**

Likes and Dislikes*:

Strengths*:

Weaknesses*:

 **ooo**

 **Background-**

History*: (Keep this brief, but not so short that I can't decipher why they're here!)

Family:

 **ooo**

 **School-**

What are they here for?*: (Field of study)

Classes*: (Maximum of 7 periods)

Best Subject: (Only one per person! Subjects that impact exam score: English, Social Studies/History, Science, and Math. Any others are also allowed.)

 **ooo**

 **Miscellaneous-**

Hobbies:

Any other things you would like to add:

* * *

 **And that's it! The first deadline will be April 18th.**

 **Another thing: It'll be best if you could PM me your OC, as this is a school, and no one will know each other. But Guest reviews will be read as well, don't worry!**

 **Wow, that's a long form.**

 **Anyways, thank you for considering this, and I would love to see all of your OCs!**

 **PlatinumFire~**


	2. S1 x E1: Pilot

_**'Hey, it's me.'**_

 _We had finally pulled it up. It had taken us forever, with trying not to be caught and other stuff, but we'd had done it._

 _ **'It's been awhile since you left. People have been talking, you know the sort, they say stuff, rumors about what happened to you, they range from the plausible to the fucking insane 'dreamed up in a haze of LSD' kind of insane.'**_

 _She wanted us to open it. Right then and there, I mean, but we couldn't take any chances. We were already risking expulsion with being outside after hours, and everyone knew we couldn't stay outside any longer._

 _She had then called me a bitch and stomped off. But hey, I know she'll come back._

 _She always does._

 _ **'I put up posters, I cropped your face out of that picture we took while hiking up to Swindle Mountain last year. Your face looked handsome then, light bit of stubble, and those eyes, to die for. So, yeah, what I'm saying is that a happy picture of us ended up on a missing persons poster'.**_

 _We didn't know where to put it at first, so while we were all suffering on a location, we all thought we heard footsteps behind us._

 _One of the other girls spun around, not looking like her usual tired self. The blind one had turned her head to the side, but hadn't said anything. And if she hadn't said anything, I knew we weren't in danger._

 _Yet._

 _ **'Out of everyone, every person in this town, you were the only one who made any lick of sense. You slowed life down for me, made it worth it.'**_

 _ **'So, I'm hoping that you've not been abducted by aliens from Uranus or joined a terrorist cell in Iraq or whatever, joined the circus.'**_

 _We needed to hurry up._

 _Fazbear then took us to the tennis fields, and it seemed like the whole group let out a breath we didn't know we were holding in. No one liked the lake._

 _We were all happy to get away from there._

 _ **'Your dad's doing okay, I make sure of that. He says he is fine, but he isn't, he's dying inside. Your sister, Ariana, she got arrested for accidentally burning down that old furniture store off Aranrhod Avenue. She spent a week in jail for it, suspended sentence. She's doing okay, we don't speak, though. Nothing to speak about.'**_

 _She then appeared out of nowhere, scaring us half to death. The one that looked like an older version of Griffin told her not to do it again._

 _She didn't call him a bitch._

 _ **'And here's me, hoping that the address I got was a real one with the real you living there and not just some fantasy I paid forty bucks for, I don't even know if you're alive, if you're reading this right now.'**_

 _This had to be the coldest night on record. Combined with pulling a sopping wet bag (which was already starting to freeze, by the way), this hadn't really been anyone's idea of a Saturday night._

 _One of the other kids was lagging behind again. He was walking side by side with one of the cat girls, who was just strolling forward, no expression on her face. The kid himself looked terrified._

 _I didn't blame him, couldn't blame him. No one did._

 _ **'Come home, need you.'**_

 _The load seemed to get heavier. Springer wanted to move from the field because she thought it was too open._

 _The blind one agreed. She was one of the only ones everyone trusted._

 _Griffin looked like he was freezing to death, so I agreed on the moving. He relaxed, shooting me a thankful glance._

 _Eventually, we all dragged the bag to the back of the school. Except for that girl. She ran off to do God-knows-what, and then conveniently appeared when we had all made ourselves comfortable._

 _The third one had fallen asleep. How she does that, no one knows. The other fox, the kind of skinny one, woke her up, and she desperately tried not to crash again. The blue lady and the tall girl helped to keep her awake._

 _ **'I need you'.**_

 _We were all gathered around the bag. I looked at Fazbear, motioning for him to do the honors. After all, he was the one that had finally gotten it out of the lake._

 _He hauled the bag up, finding a rusted zipper along its side. After a few tries, he slowly begins to open the bag._

 _The sarcastic girl tells him to hurry up, but with much more colorful language. Fazbear tells her to shut up, and gets the second kid, the one that loves spicy food, to help him. The other cat girl stands by, a worried expression on her face._

 _I probably shouldn't have told her to leave her camera in her dorm. This would've made great evidence._

 _The bag was halfway open. Much to everyone's surprise, the loud girl had finally stopped her yelling. She stood next to the tabby cat, neither of them acknowledging each other. The tabby had her arms crossed, as if she didn't care that we had maybe made the find of the century._

 _To each their own, I guess._

 _The kid helping Fazbear lifts up a bit of the bag's cover, and a look of horror crosses his face. He dropped the bag, hands over his mouth. He was trying his hardest not to scream._

 _Alarms sound in my head, and I ask him what's wrong. He shakes his head, still covering his mouth. The two cats start in unison, eyes flashing in the darkness._

 _The temperature seemed to drop ten degrees. A freezing wind had kicked up, and I suddenly didn't want to know what was in the bag._

 _The tall girl mouths something, and she turns sharply to Griffin's look-alike. A look of understanding crosses between them, and the older fox whispers something to his blue companion._

 _The second boy had frozen in terror. He stood, stock-still, and didn't move until the blind girl felt her way over to him, and rests her hand on his shoulder. He relaxes slightly, but was still shocked._

 _The girl with the cloudy eyes was the only one who wasn't showing any sign of being rudely surprised. Something that seemed to be understanding flashes in her unseeing eyes._

 _The skinny fox and the tired girl were standing next to each other, out of warmth or fear, I didn't know. Most likely the latter, as even the loud girl had dropped her cool act._

' _ **Come home.'**_

 _Fazbear wasn't moving. He had also seen what was in the bag, and he shakes his head in bitter disappointment. He unzips the rest of the bag, and lets it fall to the frozen ground._

 _A sinking feeling sets deep inside me, along with a heavy dread. There were gasps from behind me, and the older fox mutters an expletive._

 _The loud girl's hands were balled at her sides. A single tear slides down her face, and she turns away. Not angrily, like the many other times she's done this, but with a sense of defeat._

 _It was over. We all knew it._

 _Despite our best efforts, no one was going to get out of here alive._

* * *

It was the first day of school. And like the many other first days of school I've been through, this was no different.

My name is Bonnie Lavande, and I don't want to be here.

Look, I know what others say. That's it's a privilege to go to this school, that it was a miracle that someone like me could have gotten in, that this school had produced some of the greatest minds out there, in the "real world", as they liked to call it. But just because this was the most prestigious school in the whole entire state, maybe even the country, didn't mean I was going to like it. And holy shit, my first day wasn't even been over yet and I had already been called poor twice.

Whoop-dee-do.

I ignored it, as always. Stuff like that's easy to get behind. Besides, I was prepared for the snotty brats that had gotten inside the school (probably because their parents bribed them headmaster with money), so I didn't really care. Having a thick skin will definitely save me from a bunch of stuff that goes on here.

Second period was Science. Having taken a tour of the school before the first day, it only took a while to get to the room where the class was being held. And by a while, I mean 'almost an eternity'.

That tour didn't do jack. Plus, whose great idea was it to turn a giant mansion into a school? There were way too many rooms, way too many stairs to climb, and way too many portraits of old people frowning upon the lost kids that had the unluckiness of taking the wrong stairwell.

I was totally, inexplicably lost.

"Goddamnit."

This was the third time I had walked into the medical wing in the last ten minutes. The nurses were starting to get suspicious.

After leaving with yet another fake smile, I turn to try and retrace my steps and end up crashing into another person.

"Woah! Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry! Are you okay? Did I hurt you?"

Trying to make sense of the barrage of questions that were currently assaulting me, I shake my head, muttering a negative as I straighten up.

The girl who had bumped into me sighed in relief. "Oh, that's good to know. The name's Cozmo," she adds. Her blue and purple fur was neatly brushed, and she wore the standard female uniform, a white collared blouse under a dark blue blazer, the Grand Ridge Academy logo stitched neatly in the upper left corner. She smoothes her dark blue knee length skirt down, checking to see if anything had happened to her shiny black shoes before extending her paw out to shake.

I greet her, and notice another person standing behind her. I look at her questioningly. She notes my glance and moves aside to let me see her companion, who I could see had put on his tie incorrectly.

"This is Aries Finnegan," Cozmo says brightly. "We got lost looking for our Science class."

The dark red fox coughs, trying to desperately fix his tie. When he finally gave up, he sets on straightening his own blazer, a perfect copy of the one I was wearing. "Yeah. By any chance, do you know where it is?"

I shrug, shaking my head. "Don't ask me. I'm looking for the same class as you and I have no idea where I'm going."

"Science, you say? God, I hate that class. It'll be better if you just skip."

The three of us turn around to see who the new voice was. A brown bear leans against the mahogany wall of the school, a half-smile on his muzzle. A girl stands next to him, holding a cup of hot chocolate in her hands. She looked like she had just gotten out of bed, her chestnut brown hair all messed up, green eyes bleary. She takes a sip of the drink, yawning.

"I'd listen to him if I were you," she says, motioning towards the bear. "He says that everyone gets a free pass on the first week of school, since the place is so big."

Cozmo raises an eyebrow. "And you trust him why?"

"Because this is my third year here, kitty cat," the bear drawls, crossing his arms. Cozmo looks at him warily.

"Okay, I'll bite," she finally sighs. She walks over to him, and the fox and I look at each other before following her.

"What's your name?" I ask, settling myself next to the tired-looking girl.

"Desideria Campana's the name, but everyone calls me Ria," she replies. She offers me a second cup of hot chocolate that had seemingly appeared out of thin air. "You want some?"

I accept, and take a small sip. The stuff was amazing. "And what's his?" I point to the bear, who had closed his eyes and was resting his head on the wall.

"That's Freddy Fazbear. He apparently knows his way around the entire place, but he told me he's taking advantage of the free week," she downs the rest of her cup. "And frankly, I'm with him."

I grudgingly had to agree. Along with being a very famous school, this place also had some rigorous classes. Anyone who couldn't keep up with them was promptly kicked out.

"This your first year?" Ria asks, addressing us newcomers. We all nod, and she grins. "Same here."

Aries had finally fixed his tie. Or maybe someone else did it for him, I don't know. But he had gotten the courage to step up to Fazbear, and was talking to him.

"...no, the stairs don't move at night," Fazbear was saying. "You just need to know your way around the school, and you'll just get the hang of it."

Ria had given a cup of hot chocolate to Cozmo, who was drinking it. "Where'd you get this? It's wonderful."

Ria frowns, a hazy look crossing her face. "I actually don't remember."

Cozmo shrugs. "Oh well! So, we can just stay here?"

Fazbear laughs slightly. "No, and that's the only problem with this. We need to keep changing spots or else the security'll catch us."

"I thought you said this was a free week?" I ask.

"It is. But they just don't like anyone roaming the halls. And speaking of roaming," Fazbear checks a gold watch on his right wrist. "We'll move right now."

Our ragtag band follows the bear down some flights of stairs, across hallways, and past classes that were in session. We then stop near the restrooms on the first floor and resume our positions.

"So," Fazbear speaks up. "I'm betting you've heard all of the secrets that supposedly have to do with this school."

I know I did. They were really popular where I came from, and everyone had wished me luck once they found out I was going there. Some of them were believable, but the rest sounded like the ghost stories that people told around a campfire.

Aries's cyan blue eyes light up. "Definitely. And the legends surrounding the lake…they're all just so interesting."

Fazbear grins, tapping the wall. "And what if I told you they're all true?"

Cozmo flicks an ear. "Then they wouldn't be sending anyone here. It'll be too dangerous. And they could get sued."

The bear sighs lightly. "The headmaster's obviously covering everything up. That's why they tell us not to believe any rumors that we've heard. They're trying to stop them from spreading. And you know how I know?" He smirks, scanning us with cerulean eyes.

"Because I've seen it happen."

"It?" I ask.

The smirk turns into a leer.

"A murder."

* * *

 **OCs Used:**

Cozmo- Bushclaww

Aries Finnegan- FoxLord7

Desideria "Ria" Campana- AnonChan1

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **Wow, I had so much fun reading all of your OCs! But guess what: I still need more. Two more males, to be exact. And remember to bear in mind that just because your OC hasn't appeared yet, doesn't mean that they're not accepted.**

 **Be prepared for mystery, suspense, and drama...**

 **Reviews are very much appreciated!**

 **(Special thanks to Ridley Jonson for helping with this!)**

 **PlatinumFire~**


	3. S1 x E2: Good People Now

_Yo, you, bulletproof in black like a funeral_

 _The world around us is burning but we're so cold_

 _It's the few, the proud, and the emotional_

 _-Fairly Local, Twenty One Pilots_

* * *

We stand in silence, not knowing whether to be shocked or skeptical. Aries looks stoked as hell, Ria just pulled another cup out of nowhere, and Cozmo's look of disbelief has deepened.

Freddy surveys our reactions and puts his arms behind his head, thoughtful. "You think I'm lying?" He asks quietly. "And just for the record, I don't."

Aries was the first to reply. "Who was it?"

Freddy blinks. "The murderer or the victim?"

"The murderer."

He shrugs, making his way over to window. "That's one problem: I don't know. And neither does anyone else I've asked, for that matter. The only thing that's certain is that the body of the unlucky student was dumped right in the middle of that." He taps a finger against the window that was looking out onto the campus.

I think I'll speak for everyone when I said the lake was creepy. A low mist hangs over it, shrouding its far banks with a thick fog. The water was completely still, even though there was a slight breeze blowing throughout the place. Its surface was dark blue, looking black in some places, as it was very deep. The reeds around it swayed, actually affected by the wind. Even from here, inside the school, the malevolent aura that radiated off of the lake's inky waters managed to drive itself deep into us, coming to a stop in the darkest recesses of our minds where it would be sure to show itself once we were alone and pensive in our dorms. A shiver goes down my spine.

The lake had actually been there when the school was built, which was surprising. The area it covered was huge, and it would have been better if they had drained it to build on top of it. That's what most places did, but this was an odd exception. Actually, now that I think about it, this place was subject to a lot of exceptions. Being loaded with money probably had something to do with it.

I glance at Fazbear, who was still looking out at the lake, an unreadable expression on his face. After thinking a bit, I sidle up to him.

"That's been there for a while, hasn't it?"

He smiles slightly, turning away from the view to pace a bit. Three pairs of eyes followed him, intent on what he had to say.

"From what I've heard, it's been here since the town was founded. And there've been lots of stories about it, both good and bad." He thinks for a moment. "But mostly bad.

"Lots of people around here say it's cursed, that all the bad things that happen here are a result of whatever's under the lake, that it's angry that people here are building so near to it. Others think it's the actual Academy that's haunted or something. Because this building here also has its fair share of rumors that go around. With the whole scandal on immoral experiments being held in the basement and stuff."

Cozmo's eyes widen. "Experiments?"

Freddy waves a paw. "That's something for later. Right now, I'm about to share with you some bizarre stuff that I've compiled over the years. I'm not gonna namedrop anyone who's helped me with this either, because this shit is the real deal." Before he could continue, he looks around. After being satisfied with whatever he was looking for (or the lack of, more likely), he motions towards us. "In the bathroom. All of you." He then dives into the restroom.

Aries and I glance at each other. Ria was already following the bear, humming a nonsensical tune. She stops and looks back at us, raising her eyebrows. "You coming?"

We both look at Cozmo. She still had a sort of skeptical air around her, but she seemed to be fighting back curiosity. She notices our gazes and shrugs. "After you."

I enter the bathroom after Ria, Aries and Cozmo tagging along. I feel them both stop behind me, taking in the glory of the men's restroom. Yeah, I know that sounded sarcastic, but note that I'm not joking when I say the urinals looked like they were made out of solid gold. But hey, enough about that.

Ria stops a short distance in front of me, and I catch up to peer over her shoulder. Freddy was in the middle of talking to another girl, both of them located near the far wall. I heard faint snippets of their conversation, and then Freddy turns to address us.

"Guys, this is Pura. Pura, these are a bunch of freshies that I picked off the side of the road."

Cozmo frowns indignantly but says nothing. Aries lets out an enthusiastic 'Hi!', and I offer my own greeting. The black-haired girl turns around, and that's when I notice her eyes. The iris and pupils were clouded over, misty green cataracts obscuring her vision. She addresses us all with a nod and a small smile.

"So, are you all here because you want to be? Or did Freddy drag you along after promising to tell you everything he knows?"

I manage to squeak out something that sounded like a maybe before Freddy butts in. Rolling his eyes, he motions to the spectacularly blank wall behind Pura. "They wanted to know what was going on and haven't gotten under my skin yet, so I considered them worthy of bringing them in on the investigation."

Pura nods and glances at us again. "Are you all ready for this? Because it'll only get weirder."

Ria shrugs. "No use bailing out now. Besides, I'm not gonna lie, this sounds like a really confusing conspiracy theory and I'm totally into that." She takes a swig of her coffee, striding over to stand next to Pura. "So yeah, I think I'm ready."

Cozmo, Aries, and I share one last apprehensive look before turning to Freddy. We all collectively agree that why not; because we literally had nothing better to do, and that discovering the hidden secrets of the Academy sounded a lot more fun than hanging out in the corridors waiting for a teacher to come smite us for being out of class.

And that was how we got ourselves involved in the most messed-up mystery we had ever encountered. But we didn't know that yet.

Freddy grins and saunters over behind Pura, who was standing in front of a sink. Freddy turns both knobs clockwise and steps back, staring intently at the wall.

Nothing happened. Someone behind me shuffles their feet. In the corner of my eye, I see Ria offer a cup of coffee to Pura, who accepts it. I take a look at Aries, who didn't seem very affected by this awkward moment. In fact, he looked even more interested. He notices me and waves. I wave back, albeit less enthusiastically.

Freddy coughs and twists the knobs again. This time, a low tremor rumbles through the bathroom, and a slab on the lower part of the wall slides up with the grating sound of stone. Although this lasted only a few seconds, I couldn't help but glance over my shoulder to see if anyone else had entered the restroom. The only thing we needed was some kid to wander in and see us all standing around this extremely suspicious opening like douchebags who had just vandalised school property, or even worse, a teacher appearing and asking us what we were doing. Thankfully, none of that happened.

Freddy ducks into the opening without another word. After a few heartbeats of silence, Aries follows him, and motions for us to do the same. Ria gives us a lopsided smile before going in as well, and then Cozmo hesitantly goes after her.

I blink at Pura and point stupidly at the hole for a few moments before realizing what I was doing. "Oh. Oh shit. I'm so sorry." I retract my arm and fumble with it, not knowing what to do.

Pura smiles, stepping away from the hole. "It's okay, Bonnie. You can go first so I can check if anyone'll enter."

I swallow and offer another apology, then enter the opening as fast as I could. It was dark and wet and smelled like shit, and when I placed my hand against the wall it came away slimy. I shudder and wipe it against my pants, trying to keep Cozmo's backside in my field of vision. I feel Pura come in behind me, and I hear the grinding again. Fearing the tunnel would be plunged into darkness, I speed up a bit. Fortunately, nothing disappeared, and I could make out some sort of light illuminating the end of the tunnel. Pretty sure dying didn't smell this bad, though.

Cozmo suddenly stops, and I almost barrel into her again. She then jumps down from the tunnel, and I get my first look at the super secret underground base. Was this underground? I have no idea.

The room was bathed in a harsh yellow light, provided by the flickering fluorescent lights embedded in the ceiling. A low buzzing accompanied them, although it eventually faded into background noise. The walls were covered in moss and various other slimy substances. Thankfully, the gross stench that permeated the tunnel was missing here. The concrete floor looked like it hadn't been cleaned since the school was built, and neither did the table shoved into the far right corner of the room. Speaking of the table, it was absolutely covered with papers, books, and used cups. More of them littered the floor, stacks and stacks of what looked like classified documents leaning against the dirty walls. But the main focus of the room was the huge collage of pictures and papers that dominated the back wall. It looked like something out of a cheesy conspiracy theory movie, with erratic scribbles of marker scattered throughout the entire thing, red yarns connecting various different pieces of evidence with each other like the world's craziest cat's cradle. Pushpins of different colors and sizes held the clues up, punctuated by the occasional bright flash of a sticky note. And in the middle of it all was the first and last letters of the alphabet in black Sharpie, all caps, circled and underlined and highlighted over and over again. Under this monstrosity was another table, sinking from the weight of even more books, pencils, pens, whatever.

It was absolutely mental.

We stand in silence, absorbing the chaotic environment we had just entered. Freddy strolls over to the giant collage and picks up a stray marker. Turning to us, he waves it around.

"Listen, I know how this looks. A smelly, creepy-ass room that can only be accessed by crawling through an equally smelly, creepy-ass tunnel. And the room looks like a mental patient's ward. Believe me, I've spent too much time in this place than I'd like to admit, but it's all for a good reason. Promise. Now—" he turns back around and taps the two letters in the middle of the collage. "—any questions before I get started with this?"

Cozmo tentatively raises a paw. "How...how in the world is the entrance to this place still functional?"

Freddy thinks for a bit. "Actually, I have no idea. It was like that when I first discovered it. It's old as hell is all I know."

Cozmo nods slightly, still a bit speechless.

Ria tucks her hands into the pockets of her jacket. "Going through the tunnel felt like being born again. But worse." We stare at her, and she shrugs. "What? Just wanted to get that out."

After no one else speaks, Freddy taps on the letters again. "I'll get to this and the recent murder real soon, but I'll tell you some backstory first. Exposition time!" He points to some metal chairs that are scattered around our general vicinity. "You can sit down on those; this is gonna get a bit long."

"When this school first opened in the early 50's, it had already set up its image. Admissions were high and acceptance rates low, but that didn't matter to anyone because it offered variety in its classes, and that it was the only good school in like a 10 mile radius. Various well-known people have graduated from here, and everyone who entered left with vast knowledge about their major. Everything was looking great for the Academy. But—and there's always a but—the 11th year is when the first murders began." He crosses over to the other side of the collage, and flipping some papers out of the way, points at a random sheet of paper. Moving it a bit with his marker, the paper unfolds and the rest of it tumbles to the floor, looking like a really long receipt.

"The murders of 13 people over the course of 9 months began, with the first one being committed in early February of 1962 and the last one on October 12th, 1962. Coincidentally enough, that was the same day the Columbus Day Storm of 1962 struck the Northwest Pacific." Freddy moves away from the collage and rifles around through the stuff on the table nearest to him. He pulls out a sheaf of various newspaper clippings attached to each other. They were slightly faded, but the headline on the front one was clear: 'Worst Storm in Northwest History Hits Coast', accompanied with a black and white picture of a destroyed home.

"There were 46 casualties and hundreds of fatalities, including people from the school. Most of the deaths and injuries were a result of winds, such as trees falling and building coming apart. However, all of the deaths that occurred near the Academy were drownings. Why? Because Lake Sagahile managed to break its banks within the first half hour of the storm." Okay. So the unsettling lake had a name.

"While the lake was contained relatively quickly, it had succeeded in wreaking havoc in the short amount of time it flooded. The waters managed to get all the way to the second town over, and it even had a few homes taken in its name. But the only structure not affected? Grand Ridge Academy. Even though it's literally right next to Lake Sagahile, plus the fact that it takes up several acres, not one square inch of it was wet." Freddy sets the newspaper clippings down and walks back to the collage. "And this is only the beginning of the weird stuff."

"After the storm, and after everything was repaired and ready to go, people started going back to the lake again. The thing is, before the storm, Lake Sagahile was a fun place for the whole family. If your family consisted of a bunch of suffering college kids. But whatever. The point is, the lake was a great place to spend your break time. People swam in it, ate by it, had little boats that they went on and just floated there, it was all good. But, like I said, that was before the storm. After, everyone had noticed that Lake Sagahile wasn't the same as it was before." Here, Freddy places a claw on one of the red strings and traces it all the way down to the far left corner of the collage. He pulls various pushpins out of the document and takes it down the wall, revealing a square of old cork board. He tosses it over to Aries, who catches it. Freddy waves a paw at him. "You can look through that."

"It didn't take long for people to realize that the lake was definitely different. For starters, the water was a different color, a whole lot darker than before, almost black. At first, it was dismissed as being a seasonal thing because it was November by now. Same with the temperature. When someone tried to swim in it, they found the water to be absolutely freezing. So they waited until spring, and the conditions of the water still hadn't changed. But people still went in because you know how stubborn everyone is. And those who swam in Lake Sagahile never came out the same."

The document had reached me, handed to me by Cozmo, who looked as if had someone had walked over her grave. I hesitantly take the stack of papers and begin to go through them, mentally bracing myself for whatever was inside.

It turned out to be a collection of crime scene reports of the 13 murders, leading all the way up to October 12th. They detailed the date, time, and scene of the killing, complete with pictures. I wince and flip through the images, not really wanting to see that on my first day here.

"They complained not only about the temperature of the water, but also of a sensation of an endless abyss being opened up under them. The banks of the lake suddenly seemed a lot farther away, and it took them much longer to get back to the shore than before. Also, although there were less of these reports, some people even claimed that they felt something wrap around their legs. One thing to note: all of these people were in the middle of the lake when this happened, and after they had gotten out of the water, vowed to never go back in again."

"The one thing everyone agreed on was the depth of the lake. It had seemingly changed overnight, or in this case, over the course of a few months. Once again, this effect was strongest when one was in the middle of Lake Sagahile, and it even affected people on boats. And if one looked down when in this spot, they would only see darkness, even on the brightest day. So after a few more weeks of these complaints, some scientists came over and officially measured the depth of the lake. They found nothing wrong with it, though. In addition, all of the animals that used to live in and around the lake had disappeared. When others were attempted to be introduced, they either all died or left."

Freddy retrieves the document from Pura. He hangs it back on the cork board and points at it. "As you have all seen, this is a collection of the crime reports of the murders. I found them at the library, don't worry. The thing is, they were the only ones I _could_ find. Turns out that in December of 1962, evidence appeared that the murders were planned by a specific group of people. Nobody knows who this group was, but theories suggest a cult, a demonic ritual, and a secret society that opposed the building of the school. I've narrowed it down to the killings being part of a cult, although I don't yet know what kind it was. But the thing is, some higher school officials tried to clean up the incident as best as they could. I'm pretty sure they participated in the burnings of legal documents, which is why there's so little evidence that these murders ever existed. But there was one thing they couldn't get rid of: the lake. Draining it was out of the question as it cost loads of money and they really didn't have any use for the land that it would provide. So they decided to prohibit anyone from coming too close to the lake, and being caught in it was a good reason for expulsion. Being outside during night hours was also forbidden, but I'm sure you all know these rules. They're the first ones they tell you when you get here."

He walks over to the other table and pushes a stack of papers aside, retrieving an innocuous-looking manila folder. "And that's what happened in the past. I'm getting to the present real soon. Anyways, the murders and the cult and the lake were all covered up. But no matter how much people tried to deny them, mysterious disappearances became common. Fortunately, most of the victims were always found. Unfortunately, notice how I said 'most'. As of now, there there have been 11 unsolved disappearances where the missing person was never recovered."

The words come out before I could stop myself. "11? That's two less than the original 13."

Freddy spins around and points the marker at me. "Exactly. Which means that there are only two people left to go "missing" before something bad happens again. Probably even something even worse than the Columbus Day Storm. But that's just a theory of mine, and I'm really hoping that it's not true."

"These cases have become a source of legends, and many outsiders are now scared of attending the Academy in fear of becoming the next person to disappear. But the promise of possibly being accepted to the most prestigious school in North America is too great to resist, and now admission rates are skyrocketing again." He holds up the folder. "This is just all of the evidence that I've collected in regards to the most recent disappearances."

Aries finally speaks up after being quiet for a long time. "And...what's the meaning of that?" He points to the two large letters in the middle of the collage.

Freddy sighs, shoulders slumping a bit. "I hate to admit it, but I don't know. 'Az' has shown up in every single photograph of the old murders, and has also been found in several reports that I probably shouldn't be able to access." He pronounced the A and Z separately, as their own letters. "I'm thinking it's connected to the cult somehow, but I have no idea what it's supposed to mean. It's not an abbreviation, or a symbol, and it sure as hell isn't Arizona. I've kind of run out of ideas on what it stands for."

We contemplate this piece of information for a bit, turning it over in our heads. But as Freddy said, no one had any clue what it meant.

This time, Ria breaks the silence, shifting her coffee from one hand to another. "You said something about witnessing a murder. D'ya think that'll help you with anything?"

Freddy's face darkens, and he sets the folder down. He pulls out a chair and sits in it, joining us in the makeshift half-circle we had formed in a non-cluttered part of the room. He leans forward and places his elbows on his knees, a pensive look on his face.

"I don't really talk about this to anyone because it's sort of sensitive, but if it means finding out what the hell's going on around here, I'll tell it a thousand times." The bear takes a deep breath and fixates his vision on us.

"The eleventh disappearance was my brother."

* * *

 **hey nya'll, it's been a while! I bet you're all wondering what's going on, so here are some questions nobody has asked but I will answer:**

 **what took you so long? I thought there was going to be a chapter dump? why are you such a big stupid idiot?**

reason number 1) I did actually write a bunch of chapters first, and then let them sit in my laptop for a while before editing them. but when I came back to reread them, I realized that I didn't like the plot. there were too many inconsistencies going on, along with a bunch of side plots that weren't getting resolved. so I left the chapters alone for another loooooooong time. I kind of ran out of motivation just because I couldn't make the story work. until! I finally made a connection with something and figured out how the plot was supposed to go. so right now I'm just rewriting the entire thing lol

reason number 2) school and life. but mostly school. too many ap classes does something to a person

reason number 3 that sounds really stupid but is actually legitimate) I couldn't decide how to name the chapter titles

 **so, how do you name chapter titles?**

sometimes it's the last song I listen to when I finish writing the chapter. sometimes I choose. sometimes I hit shuffle on my crappy playlist and pick the first song that comes up. sometimes the songs will make sense. sometimes they will not. who knows? I sure don't

they all correspond in some way to the chapter, some more clearly than others

 **do the songs have something to do with the lyrics at the beginning of the chapter?**

yeah it's just for fun tho

 **does your icon have something to do with this new plot?**

yes  
him bastard

 **is your icon doing the circle game?**

the what

 **what's your update schedule?**

sporadic

 **also huge shoutout to AnonChan1 who litch relly dragged me out of writer's block (thanks for the discord stuff too and I'm sorry that I'm absolute shit at responding quickly hhh)**

 **they're cool and good person :thumbsup:**

 **one last thing if anyone has written a lab report for any kind of science class hmu because I have no idea what the hell I'm doing**

 **-Megiido, im back bich**


End file.
